To Move a Star
by Ravenwoodwitch
Summary: After suffering defeat a the hands of a human girl, Jareth has lost his grasp over the Labyrinth. Than, by a chance mistake, a mysterious creature falls out of the sky into his domain, carrying the only means of him to regain control of his Labyrinth. Can he persuade her to hand it over? Furthermore, what of the evil that follows this mysterious creature with horrifying intent?


Greetings gentle readers. This is Raven, and this is a story replacement for my Harry Potter fanfic. Because my editor for that story is out for awhile, I've decided to do this fun little crossover. I encourage those who haven't seen _Stardust_, or read the Neil Gaimon book, to do so. It's quite a good story from both angles. If you haven't, never fear, prior knowledge isn't required. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy.

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_**To Move A Star**_

_**Chapter 1: A Chance in Miss-Fortune **_

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"What lies behind us, and what lies ahead of us, are tiny matters compared to what lives within us."

-Henry David Thoreau

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"Shut up!"

"_No, you shut up!_"

Shu, a grey, pale, short goblin glared menacingly at the intricately carved stone head. The thing had screamed at her now once too many, and she was hoping to force it into some kind of submission. The head, one of many lining the walls, stared back at her with a decidedly unimpressed look.

"_You'll have to blink sometime,_" it said flatly.

Right on cue, the little goblin's eyes slammed shut. The stone face broke into a victorious smirk while Shu rubbed her teary eyes.

"_Go back while you still can!_" It bellowed.

Shu shot the creature a glare. It wasn't enough that her ungrateful brats had thrown her and her husband into the oubliette, or that they were now crawling through the dark, damp, and utterly unforgiving caverns underneath the Labyrinth. No, It seemed that fate also wanted her to go stir crazy thanks to several attitude-riddled rock-heads who loved their jobs just a little too much.

"_You_," she growled. "I oughta-!"

A male goblin came rushing down the tunnel. He was one of the taller variety, with mud colored skin, pure white hair that brushed his shoulders, and a hooked nose covered in warts. He held the torch aloft, adding a yellowish tint to his green eyes, and sighed. Why couldn't she have been born a mute?

"Quit arguing with him," he said.

Shu's glare shifted to him.

"Ruz, you're supposed to be on my side," she said. "And after I pushed all five of your little brats out."

"Yeah and they sent us down here," Ruz said. "Besides, that...head, is just doing its job."

Shu snorted. "Which is what? Yelling like he just swallowed hot coals?"

"Scaring people out of the city," Ruz said, confidently. Shu rolled her eyes.

"As if," she said."These things couldn't scare a gnat!"

"_Soon it will be too late!"_ A distant one shouted. Shu jumped, earning a smirk from her husband.

"Sure scared you," he noted.

"Well…that's not helpful," Shu sniffed. "I'm hardly some silly little nitwit trying to find her bawling baby bro-"

Ruz spun around and slapped a hand over Shu's mouth. His wife audibly complained until she saw the look of horror on his face. His eyes were sifting all around the tunnel, eyeing both the natural cave walls and brick replacements with equal apprehension. He turned his gaze back on Shu and pulled her closer.

"He'll _hear_ you," he hissed.

The walls shivered slightly, creating a low rumble. At the sound of moving earth, both goblins turned behind them. With a low tittering sound (Shu could have sworn it was a giggle), the dirt ceiling above them began to shift dangerously. Ruz yanked Shu back as a wall of dirt fell in a leviathan fashion, blocking the only exit in the tunnel. When the dust cleared, they were looking at a solid wall, and an echoing sound that could have been mistaken for laughter.

"Now look what you've done!" Ruz said.

Shu was stunned for a few seconds before anger rose in her chest. She narrowed her eyes and pushed Ruz's hand away.

"Oh, what are you afraid of, Lack-wit?" she said. "_He_ didn't do that; he hasn't done anything like that in weeks!"

"That had to be him you moron! Who else has that kind of power?"

"Not him." Shu rolled her eyes. "In case you haven't noticed, someone hasn't been nearly as threatening as normal."

"Maybe not in front of you," Ruz muttered. "The several goblins he dumped headfirst into the bog would disagree."

"So he's a sore loser," Shu replied casually. "I ain't scared."

Arguing was pointless, so Ruz turned to keep walking instead. As the two continued their trek, the stone faces continued their tirade...but, halfway through, it was clear that whatever was behind them was running out of steam. Curious, Shu cocked her head to the side and listened.

"_This is not… uh…. the way!_" one tried.

"_Be…be something..._" The head contorted its eyes and nose in thought.

"_Beware, dummy,_" It's neighbor said. "_Beware!_"

Realizing that her nerves were for naught, Shu let herself relax. Smirking, she tapped her husband on the shoulder.

"You see?" she gloated. "Even these poor sods are more bark than bite."

"They always were," Ruz said. "That proves nothing."

"Sure it does!" The goblin lady huffed. "How else do you think we managed to escape?"

Ruz sniffed. "I figured out the broom closet trick."

"Which the likes of you shouldn't have even been able to find!" Shu slapped the back of his head. "His royal prissiness has lost his touch, admit it."

That low rumble got louder, beginning to sound more and more like a dog's menacing growl. What little light they had through the cracks and crevices of the dirt began to shrink until everything went black. Feeling her confidence take a dive, Shu stuck close to her husband.

"Well…" she started. "...it's...it's just the truth."

In final response to the goblin's treason, one of the stone faces jerked open it's eyes. Feeling a sudden burst of energy, it opened its maw and let out one last bellow.

"_**BEWARE! FOR THE PATH YOU TAKE WILL LEAD TO CERTAIN DESTRUCTION!"**_

With a shriek, Shu barreled over her husband and down the tunnel. Ruz went splat against the dirt, and his wife vanished into the darkness. His paternal instincts dictated he go and make sure she was okay...and yet the fatter part of him complained about his inability to run. Check on wife, or preserve ability to breathe proper? He went with the latter and lifted his head off the ground.

"Damn woman!" He called. "Get back here!"

Shu continued to run. It took about three different walls hitting her directly for her to realize that she was flailing in the dark, and she began to frantically search her apron. With her head down and her hands busy, the goblin's path became erratic, without rhyme or reason. Finally, the little creature found a match. and lifted it out of her pocket.

With a cartoonish splat she hit something small and hard.

"Owww…." she groaned, head reeling. She backed away several steps, and rubbed her now broken nose. "What in the-?"

Ears ringing, Shu managed to open her eyes and scan around the room. It was still black, but she could vaguely make out something rectangular in the center. She remembered the match and went down to her hands and knees, feeling about the ground.

"Come on, come on…"

She finally found it, thankfully dry, and ran it along her rough nose. The match illuminated the room, barely, to show a square alcove made from solid brown brick with cement squares for corner had its own personal cluster of cobwebs, and places where rot was beginning to make the ceiling sag. There was a ladder at the far east corner, but Shu was hardly giving it the time of day. At the center of the room was the object that brought her to an unceremonious stop: a pedestal, only about three feet in height, made from old red brick. At the top was a silver owl claw, nails sharp.

The claw was holding something round and reflective, but the tiny light wasn't enough to discern for sure what it was. Shu held the match closer and saw that it was little more than a small, glass sphere, swimming with a rainbow of colors, but lacking any luster. She shrugged and plucked it off the silver claw for closer inspection.

"Bloody hell, what are you?" she asked.

"Shu!" Ruz's voice echoed loudly. "Dammit, woman, where are you?"

"Over here," was her lazy reply. She was still staring intently at the crystal when her husband finally found her. "Sheesh, what in the world-"

Ruz's eyes landed on the cyrstal. The color drained from his face, and his whole frame began to shake.

"You...p-put that back!" he stuttered.

Shu looked up. "What are your knickers in a twist for?"

"That's one of his majesty's magical crystals! PUT IT BACK!"

That was a shocker. Shu's eyes boggled, and she slowly looked back at her find. The king's magic toys, one of his most powerful tools of mischief, was right here in her dirt-stained hands. Not only that, but the object was special if his majesty wanted to hide it down here. What would he give to get it back...and what could she do with it in the meantime? She began to picture herself sitting amidst a room of jewels, fine furs, and all the bog-berry pies she could ever want.

"Is it now?" she grinned. "Aren't we lucky…"

Ruz ceased his impromptu heart attack, mouth hanging open. "Are you _daft_? He'll kill us!"

"Without his magic 'thingamajigger?" Shu smirked, throwing and catching it.

Ruz frowned. "He's got more."

"Than he won't miss one."

"Put it back."

"Why?"

"Because obviously this one is special!" he shouted. "And I'm not taking a nose-dive into the bog of eternal stench over _you_!"  
Shu drew up closer, wrapping an arm around his neck. "Just think, Ruzy. All the power of the Goblin King right here in our hands! We could rule this entire city…"

"Shu," Ruz's voice held a warning, "Put. It. Back."

Shu frowned, and slowly backed away. "No. I'm gonna keep it and take over that damn city. And if you're smart you'll help me out so we can share."

Ruz wasn't smart; but he was smarter than this. The tunnel walls were shifting much quicker now, and the room was looking smaller in minutes time. There was no way either of them would get out if she kept talking like that, kept staring at that crystal ball with the same wild look in her eyes. The male goblin went still, and Shu finally caught his eye.

"...I did it for you, love." he said. Than, as she looked on, he dropped the torch into the muddy water.

As the darkness enveloped them both, Ruz tore the crystal out of her hands. Shu gasped, and Ruz made his quick exit up the ladder. Shu's arms began to grasp and grab wildly.

"COME BACK HERE! GIVE ME THAT!"

Ruz knocked open the lid to the tunnel, emerging out of an urn. He was in the garden section now, surrounded on all side by box-hedges. They used to be clean and sharp, but now looked much more unruly and faded in color. Even the statues situated near them, commissions from Jareth himself, looked like they were crumbling. But Ruz refused to ponder on bad art, and vaulted himself out of the urn and onto the cobblestones.

Ruz rolled on his back to catch his breath. It looked like the sky was just starting to darken, and little stars began to peer out from the clouds. It was pretty, pretty enough to almost distract him from just how much trouble they were in. But, hearing the huff and puff of his wife struggle up the ladder, he forced himself back to his feet.

His wife poked her head out behind him, eyes wide with rage. Ruz shook his head and held the little ball up high.

"It's for your own good!" he shouted, and threw it as hard as he could. It soared up into the sky, far away, while Shu tackled her husband and tried to strangle him. The crystal reached the peak of its arc, ready to fall back down, when a sudden gust of air blew it back up at impossible heights. By wind, by magic, or perhaps fate, something wanted that little ball to go soaring up into the heavens.

And soar it did.

Yvaine had been minding her own business when it happened. In fact, she had done little more that night then wake up.

The star stretched her pale limbs with a yawn. She sat up and allowed herself to start glowing at full, her white light illuminating her familiar celestial home. The rose reds and bright oranges were giving way to the black velvet night, with various rocks and gases to greet her tired eyes. As the night began to settle in, Yvaine saw her family slowly fill the sky with red, blue, and even brilliant white light. The kaleidoscope of colors and sights were old news to her now, and had been for the past thousands of years.

Sybil, Yvaine's nearest sibling, rose moments later, her blue aura beginning to softly shimmer in the night sky.

"Good Evening," Yvaine smiled. Sybil groaned and rubbed her eyes.

"You're always up too early," the younger star moaned.

Yvaine chuckled, and gave her a push. "Come on, come on! It's starting!"

Sybil groaned again, but straightened out anyway. Yvaine impatiently waited for her sister's white-blue aura to reach full radiance before eagerly scanning the ground below them. The two resided above a stone labyrinth, ancient looking and massive. The many paths and corners stretched on for miles, each section unique in its design. It alternated between traditional stone walls, thick woods, and intricately trimmed gardens with ever shifting bushes. Yvaine took a moment to admire the always changing design before centering in on the castle in the middle, specifically to the highest tower parapet.

"There he is," she whispered. Sybil rolled her eyes.

"This is hardly that fascinating," she said. "It's just an owl."

The creature was pristine white, with chocolate-brown feathers lining it's wings and back. She found his heart-shaped face curious somehow, thickly outlined, with one eye darker than the other. It always held itself in the most regal fashion, never slumping, and preened itself to no end. Yvaine found it about two hundred years back, and was still unsure of how this lovely creature connected to the terrifying maze below.

"It's more than that," Yvaine insisted, grey eyes narrowing. "Nothing is ever as it seems; you should know that after living here a millennia."

"You should be bored with it after two," Sybil countered. "How bloody interesting can a fluffy bird in a stone cage be?"

"Shush, there he goes!"

At a sudden updraft, the owl spread it's wings and took to the skies. A smile stretched over the star's face as she watched the beautiful creature survey the labyrinth, flying about each section in graceful circles. The star put her hands under her chin and watched the elegant flight with wistful eyes. Her sister eyed the owl with an ever-growing sense of boredom, yawned, and glanced back at her sister. Seeing that look, she frowned.

"Stop that," she said.

Yvaine blinked. "Stop what?"

"That kicked-puppy look on your face." Sybil frowned in concerned. "What's wrong?"

Yvaine didn't speak for a few moments. She sighed and glanced back at the owl, watching it look over the bog. "You were right about one thing, Sybil," she said. "I am bored...bored and jealous."

Sybil gawked. "J-jealous? Of what?"

"Of that," Yvaine pointed to the owl, "of the goblins, of humans, of everyone really."

"But why?" Sybil grasped her sister's shoulders. "You're a _star_! You shine brightly, you're magical, and you're beautiful. All those people you listed are usually jealous of _you_."

"But they're not stuck here," Yvaine murmured. "They're going on amazing adventures and taking risks I'd_ never_ be brave enough to try. And that owl-" she groaned. "Oh he's a tease. He can go anywhere he feels like it, fly away wherever his fancies take him. Me…I won't be going anywhere anytime soon."

Yvaine's heart began to ache, watching the owl circle back towards the thick woods. Sybil wrapped her bright arms around Yvaine's shoulders, and Yvaine gratefully leaned back. Her sister kissed her temple before resting her chin on the left shoulder.

"You have us at least." Sybil smirked. "If it helps, most of us are jealous of you too."

The melancholy star laughed and pushed her sister off. No sooner had she done so that the strangest occurrence took place. The owl suddenly let out a squawk-like noise, wobbling in flight and hitting the breaks. It flapped stationary for several minutes as Sybil gave her sister's shoulder a shake.

"Yvaine, look! Look!"

Yvaine followed Sybil's finger. Two Goblins rose out of the garden section of the Labyrinth, one holding something shiny. Yvaine frowned and quickly caught sight of her owl. It was heading for the two goblins on the ground, and was preparing to dive...but for what?

Sybil suddenly screamed. "Look out!"

Yvaine turned on reflex. A bright object collided with her chest, and her starlit home began to get farther and farther away from her. Yvaine screamed and began to grab at anything she could, grasping whatever bright object had knocked her down. It glowed bright, went warm in her hands, and vanished into her chest. She heard her family scream, the moon cry out, and her own piercing shriek as the ground drew closer and closer. Knowing impact was imminent, she closed her eyes and braced herself into a ball.

Yvaine landed with a sickening crack. As pain shot up her right leg, she managed to see her owl swoop down near her landing. Tired, hurting, and more scared than she'd ever been, Yvaine closed her eyes and tried to let the darkness take her down.

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This is self-edited, by the way, so please feel free to tell me if I made a mistake, or of anything that can be fixed. I eat up constructive criticism like candy, so please don't feel the need to hold back on account of my feelings. Also, I'm likely to read one of your stories in return.

Cheers!

Raven.


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